Hobbies And Interests
Online Games
There is a variety of free online hidden-object games that you can try out first and then play with your children at home. All of these games share a basic premise: Something is hidden or wrong with the picture and the player must figure out what it is. Games range from easy to difficult and can be enjoyed by children at different age and developmental levels.
Treasure Hunt
Make a trip to the beach or lake even more fun by having a buried-treasure hunt for the kids on your trip. This activity can be fun to add to a beach birthday party. Arrive at the site early and rope off a 50-foot section of sand. Bury 12 objects in the sand and have kids try to uncover as many as they can. Give kids a list of buried objects and have prizes for everyone including a special prize for the child who is able to find the most items.
Easter Egg Hunt
Kids love Easter egg hunts, probably because of all the candy hidden inside the eggs. A fun spring variation on this game involves hiding eggs around your house, either inside or out, and filling the eggs with different noncandy items. Have your child work on colors by telling him to find all of the red eggs only or all of the blue eggs. Fill the eggs with numbers and have him open them and arrange them in numerical order. Instead of hiding eggs, you could hide different plastic shapes like stars, circles, triangles and squares and ask your child to properly identify each shape to you.
Scavenger Hunt
An in-home scavenger hunt is a great activity for a cold fall or winter day. It's also a good way to help young children learn where things belong. Select a list of about 12 common everyday items like crackers, DVDs, socks, forks, pillows, specific toys and laundry. Hide the items in random places around the house. Give your child a list of the items and follow her around the house while she searches for the items. Once she's found them all, help her continue the game by putting every item back where it belongs.
For older children, you can practice emergency-preparedness skills by hunting through the house together for a list of items you need for an emergency kit. Then put the kit together and store it in a place where the child knows to access it during an emergency.